The Mountain Scops-Owl is a small (18 cm)
owl, dark brown above with a pale collar around the hind-neck, and a row of
black-tipped, silver-white spots on the scapulars, forming a line above the
wing on the resting bird. Its facial disc is pale buff and very distinct,
and its ear-tufts are long and bicoloured brown and pale buff. The breast
is buffy and finely streaked. The iris is yellow, the bill whitish-buff and
the feet are gray. The Taiwan race hambroecki is darker brown than
continental forms, and its facial pattern and nuchal collar are more
distinct.

The Mountain Scops-Owl feeds mainly on
large insects such as moths, beetles and cicadas, and will also take small
rodents and birds. It hunts mainly in the lower levels of the forest, and
is strictly nocturnal. It prefers dense mixed broadleaf evergreen forest,
and in Taiwan is a common resident in mountains at moderate elevations. Its
distinctive two-note whistle “plew-plew” or “he-he” is repeated every 5-10
seconds .

References: Handbook of
Birds of the World Vol. 5; A Field Guide to the Birds of China (Mackinnon
and Phillipps); 100 Common Birds of Taiwan (Wild Bird Society of Taipei); N.
J. Collar, “Endemic
subspecies of Taiwan birds—first impressions”, in Birding ASIA, Number 2,
December 2004